Aftercare

Your tattoo has been bandaged with 3m Tegaderm, which is a flexible, waterproof, breathable material that will prevent significant scabbing and promote timely healing for your tattoo. The bandage is breathable as well as water proof, and as such it can be left in place for 3-5 days. I usually suggest keeping it on for 4 full days after bandaging it directly after the tattoo. Your tattoo will accumulate small to moderate amounts of blood, ink, and plasma build up on top of your skin, underneath the bandage. This is absolutely normal and not a concern. This wet substance may leak out of the bandage through small creases. Feel free to wash around the bandage to remove access leakage, however, please keep the bandage on for the recommended period of time. It may seem uncomfortable and even a bit gross but keeping your tattoo from exposure to the elements will result in minimal scabbing and dryness, as well as help your tattoo retain color and heal much quicker. Please, just deal with it!

Once the recommended period of time has passed, remove the bandage in the shower. Let warm water cascade across the bandage to help loosen the adhesive and take your time with the removal. You will want to have the warm water in the shower loosen the bandage for several minutes. Pull slowly from one corner. Upon removal of the bandage, wash your tattoo very thoroughly using only your hands, and a lather of any unscented soap. I recommend and personally use a plain sensitive skin dove bar of soap. Another good alternative is to use an unscented antibacterial liquid hand soap such as Original Dial Gold. Once washed thoroughly, allow to air dry or gently pat dry with clean paper towels. Do not use your normal towel you use to dry your body off with the shower as it may harbor bacteria. Once removing your initial bandage, do not rebandage your tattoo. Continue to wash your tattoo 1-2 times a day for the entire healing process of approximately two weeks after removal of the bandage, (either once in the shower and perhaps once by hand, vice-versa, or if you shower in both the morning and evening within the shower is perfectly fine.) If your tattoo becomes dry and itchy, feel free to use a fragrance free lotion as needed. This is meant for your personal comfort, to reduce itching, so there is no need to put any moisturizers or ointments on your tattoo until it is dry and itchy. Your tattoo may not go through a dry or itchy phase at all. If your tattoo does produce any scabbing, do not pick it! Leave any scabs on the tattoo as long as possible, allow them to come off on their own! Excessive moisturizing (especially with thick oily moisturizers such as A&D ointment, aquaphor, or various petroleum based moisturizers) may result in excess scabbing and a delayed healing time. Picking or removing scabs may result in loss of pigmentation of your skin, meaning parts of the tattoo may not heal correctly or at all. Do not pick!

If the bandage comes off within the first 3 days directly after the appointment, please be mindful to keep the area as clean as possible. A tattoo is similar to an open wound and we do not want it to become a gateway for pathogens to creep in. Take diligent care of making sure it is clean and make sure to have clean hands when applying moisturizers. If the bandage is partially on or only partially coming off but is still exposed, it is better to remove the bandage entirely. If this happens early, it's unfortunately a bit more work as you will need to be vigilant with keeping it clean and moisturized. Remember to only moisturize once it is dry and itchy, not constantly. The tattoo needs time to breathe in between washes/applying moisturizers.

Avoid direct sunlight, tanning beds, exposure to skin care products, restrictive clothing, and submerging your tattoo in water, (this includes pools, hot tubs, baths, cold plunges, etc.) until your tattoo is healed, and the skin on your tattoo returns to the normal texture of the rest of your body. This normally takes at least 2 weeks, but I suggest avoiding these for up to 4 weeks from the date of your appointment. Signs of bacterial infection in your tattoo are excessive redness or swelling or heat radiating from your tattoo for 5 days or more, and/or thick yellowish discharge emitting from your tattoo. If you experience any of these symptoms please contact us as well as seek medical attention immediately!

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